12 Social Media Tactics to Drive Sales on Your BigCommerce Store (With a Campaign Example)

We’ve found our biggest sales driver is “rider spotlight” posts where customers send us photos of their finished bikes with our graphics installed. We repost them (with permission) and tag the rider—it’s real social proof from actual customers, not us talking about ourselves. One particular post of a CRF450 with our custom blue fade kit got shared 47 times and directly led to 8 orders for that same design template within a week.

The twist that makes it work: we don’t just post the pretty photo. We include a short story the rider tells us about why they chose that design or what the bike means to them. Turns out people connect with “I built this for my first pro race” way more than “buy our graphics.” The emotional hook gets saves and shares, then people click through to see pricing.

We also learned to time these posts right before weekends when riders are actually working on their bikes. Thursday/Friday posts convert 3x better than Monday posts because people are in “let’s wrench” mode and ready to buy. Started tracking this after noticing our weekend traffic spikes but weekday social engagement going nowhere.

We’ve been driving real conversions (not just vanity metrics) for businesses since 2006, and I’ve found something most e-commerce stores completely miss with social media.

Here’s what actually works: Use Facebook pixel retargeting to serve ads specifically to cart abandoners, but here’s the twist—create a custom audience of people who spent 30+ seconds on your product pages but didn’t buy. Then serve them ads featuring customer video testimonials and reviews of those exact products they viewed. We ran this for an e-commerce client and saw a 41% increase in completed purchases within two weeks because we’re hitting people with social proof right when they’re on the fence.

The killer move is pairing this with reputation management on the backend. We help clients collect video reviews from recent customers, then immediately turn those into retargeting ad content. People trust other customers way more than they trust your product descriptions, and when someone sees a real person raving about the exact item they almost bought, conversion rates jump dramatically.

Most stores just boost product posts or run generic “shop now” campaigns. Instead, treat social media as your second chance to close sales you already almost made. Track who’s engaging with your products but not converting, then show them why other people love what they’re hesitating on.

The most effective way that I use to drive sales is through Shoppable Reels. I create 30-second product demos that include a direct “View on BigCommerce” link. Because BigCommerce syncs perfectly with Instagram, the inventory updates in real-time. It means I never accidentally sell something that’s out of stock.

Last Valentine’s Day, I ran a specific Reel series featuring a Wellness Bundle including serum, mask, and roller. I showed a quick unboxing and used a live counter in the caption saying, “Only 47 bundles left!” I priced the bundle aggressively with a 25% Off. This discount was just enough to trigger impulse buys while still keeping my profit margins healthy. As a result, in just 7 days, the campaign exploded. We got an outstanding reach with 1.2 million views and 8.7% click-through rate directly to my store.

I’ve been running ForeFront Web for 20+ years, and the most underused social tactic I see ecommerce stores missing is hyper-targeted brand awareness campaigns with creative that doesn’t look like an ad. Most stores just boost product photos and wonder why they’re burning cash.

We ran a Facebook campaign for an axe throwing bar using only $25 by targeting people who liked Red Dead Redemption 2 AND outdoor lawn sports in Columbus. The ad creative mimicked the game’s aesthetic instead of screaming “come throw axes.” Two leads converted in a week for 3:1 ROI. For BigCommerce stores, this means finding the cultural overlap between your product and what your audience is already obsessed with–then speaking that language visually.

The other killer tactic: giveaway contests to build authentic audiences before you spend on conversion ads. We ran one for Arc Solutions (welding equipment) requiring page likes, shares, and friend tags. Page likes jumped 234.7% in 30 days, which directly improved our Facebook lookalike audience quality. Most stores waste money advertising to cold traffic when they should be building engaged followers first who actually want to hear from them.

Skip the generic product carousel ads. Find the weird interest intersections in Facebook’s targeting, make your ad feel native to that subculture, and build real followers before asking for the sale.

As an agency that works with a lot of ecommerce brands on BigCommerce, one tactic that consistently drives sales is turning social comments into product hooks. Instead of just posting polished product shots, we mine real customer questions and objections from Instagram, TikTok, and even reviews, then build short-form videos that answer one specific concern head-on.

For one brand, we noticed tons of comments asking, “Is it actually worth the price?” So we ran a series of scrappy comparison videos breaking down cost per use versus cheaper alternatives, and linked directly to the BigCommerce PDP with a limited-time bundle. The content didn’t feel like an ad, it felt like an honest response to the internet. Traffic was warmer, bounce rates dropped, and we saw a noticeable lift in conversion during the campaign window.

The lesson is simple: don’t guess what to say on social. Let your customers write the script, then close the loop with a direct path to purchase.

We don’t run our store on BigCommerce, so I can’t speak to that platform directly, but I’ve had strong results using short product proof videos on social and sending clicks to a single focused landing page with a simple quote or order form. One example was a quick video showing a patch design from art proof to finished stitch, then a limited time offer on setup, and it consistently drove a spike in quote requests and turned into real orders within the next couple of weeks.

For our clients, we utilize product-centric social media campaigns paired with discount codes. Targeted promotions on Instagram and Facebook have consistently increased sales. Offering exclusive deals to followers makes them feel valued. This tactic helps in not just attracting but also retaining customers.

To amplify this, we focus on creating seasonal content tailored to current trends. This keeps our brand relevant and timely, which excites our audience. Utilizing interactive posts, like polls or questions, strengthens engagement. It’s about balancing sales tactics with creating a connection.

I’ve built websites and digital marketing systems for hundreds of businesses over 15 years, and the tactic that actually moves the needle for e-commerce isn’t the flashy campaigns—it’s remarketing to cart abandoners through Facebook/Instagram with hyper-specific creative.

We had a client selling specialty industrial equipment online who was getting traffic but terrible conversion. We set up a Facebook pixel to track cart abandons, then built ads showing the exact product they left behind with a “Still interested?” message and a 10% discount code that expired in 48 hours. That campaign alone recovered 31% of abandoned carts in the first month, adding $18K in revenue they would’ve lost.

The key is segmenting your remarketing audiences—someone who viewed a product page gets different creative than someone who added to cart but didn’t checkout. We also tested urgency messaging (“Only 3 left in stock”) against social proof (“127 people bought this last week”), and urgency won by 2x for this client because their buyers were procurement managers making quick decisions.

Track everything with UTM parameters so you know exactly which social posts or ads are driving actual sales, not just engagement. Likes don’t pay bills—conversions tracked back to specific campaigns do.

We’ve been running Stout Tent for over 10 years, and I’ve tested every social platform trying to crack this. What actually moves the needle for us is creating content that makes our customers the hero, not our products.

We started a simple tactic: asking wholesale clients and glamping business owners to send us setup photos with a brief story about their biggest challenge before opening. We share these as carousel posts with the “before” struggle in slide 1, their actual setup in slides 2-3, and real numbers (occupancy rates, ROI timeline) in the last slide. One post about a couple in Colorado who quit their corporate jobs and hit 85% occupancy in their first season drove 47 qualified wholesale inquiries in two weeks—our previous best was maybe 12.

The trick is we’re not selling tents in these posts. We’re selling the dream and proving it’s achievable with actual data from real people. Comments are flooded with questions about *how* they did it, not what tent they bought. That’s when we drop a subtle mention of our Glamping Business Blueprint course in the replies.

This works because people share aspirational content that feels attainable. A slick product photo gets scrolled past. A real person’s financial breakdown of their glamping site going from idea to profit in 18 months? That gets saved, shared, and sends qualified buyers to our site who already believe in what we do.

I lean heavily into education over promotion. Explaining how mobile storage works in practical, everyday language drives more enquiries than sales messaging. I have learned that understanding builds confidence, and confidence drives action.

We use social to create urgency without discounting the product. Countdown posts tied to weather shifts and delivery cutoffs perform best. Each post links to a BigCommerce page with clear availability messaging. That alignment converts attention into action.

During a heat wave campaign, we posted hourly updates on remaining delivery slots. The transparency built credibility and urgency together. Same-day sales rose as shoppers trusted the timing promise. Staffing chat alongside social kept momentum strong.

Leveraging social media for sales on a BigCommerce store can be effectively achieved through influencer partnerships and shoppable content. Collaborating with influencers who resonate with your brand enhances visibility and capitalizes on their established trust with audiences. By creating authentic, relatable content that includes shoppable posts, users can easily click to purchase items directly from your store, aligning perfectly with affiliate marketing strategies.